NicoNicoGakkai Beta is a new style of academy that emphasizes user-generated research. It is an online and offline research academy that recognizes research on a diversity of merits, from cultural and artistic values to academic and industrial strengths. (http://blog.stepup.io/post/71963779785/nico-nico-gakkai-the-craziest-japanese-science)
There have been four NicoNicoGakkai Beta symposiums since 2011. For the first event there was an audience of over 110,000, who left a total of over 80,000 comments.

Rapid Fire Research 100
“Rapid Fire Research 100” was one of the two formats unique to this conference. In just 15 minutes, five world class researchers made 20 pitches each about their presentation. As a result, each speaker had to go though their 20~30 years worth of research in a very short time. To the audience, it was a comprehensive guide to each field as well as a motivating talk about how (initially) humble and error-prone research turns into world changing results.

The profiles of the speakers of the first Nico nico Beta Symposium in Singapore are below:

Masahiko Inami

Masahiko INAMI is a professor at KEIO Media Design. He is also directing the JST ERATO Igarashi Design Interface Project as a group leader. He received a Ph.D. from department of engineering, the University of Tokyo in March, 1999. His research interest is in Interactive Technique, Physical Media, Robotics and Entertainment Technology. He is known as the inventor of Optical Camouflage system. He received Laval Virtual Technopole Mayenne Trophee, TIME Magazine Coolest Inventions2003, IEEE Virtual Reality 2004 Best Paper Award, ICAT 2004 Best Paper Award and more.

Koji Tsukada is an Associate Professor of Future University Hakodate. He received his Ph.D. from Keio University in 2005. His research interests include augmented commodities, interaction techniques with novel materials, and support system for personal fabrication. He received the Ig Nobel Prize 2012 (Acoustics) for creating SpeechJammer, a machine disturbs person’s speech using delayed auditory feedback.

Takuya Nojima
Takuya Nojima is an associate professor of the University of Electro-Communications, Tokyo, Japan. He received his BE and ME in mathematical engineering and information physics, and Dr.Eng. in advanced interdisciplinary studies from the University of Tokyo in 1998, 2000, and 2003, respectively. His research interests includes haptic (particularly proprioception and physical activity) technology, and augmented sports .https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R12hGylmY8A

Junichi Rekimoto
Jun Rekimoto is Professor in Interfaculty Initiative in Information Studies at the University of Tokyo and doubles up as a Deputy Director of Sony Computer Science Laboratories. His has worked in the field of Human Computer Interaction has created lasting and highly significant impact that is present in a multitude of interfaces and devices used by millions of people. His invention list includes the world first mobile augmented reality, multitouch, location sensing. He is now focusing on technologies for augmenting humans. Rekimoto strongly believes in the power of imagination as our primary drive force to create the future, and questions how our lives and this world would change if our dreams were to come true.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5f3z3_vPVU

EmceeMasakazu Takasu
Masakazu Takasu, technical evangelist at teamLab, Committee of Maker Faire Singapore 2015, and Shenzhen 2015 takes us on a journey to his homeland of Japan and their exciting ways of using technology, design and science. TeamLab combines these disciplines to create innovative digital solutions often with physical elements of interaction.

Through playing and experimentation, connecting prototyping with 3D graphics, art and much more, they’re creating a whole new world of gaming, interactive decorations and augmented reality.

Yet again another interesting workshop where we witnessed kids being innovative. Children were not restricted by any hard and fast rules hence the sky was the limit for their creativity. At the end of the workshop, we were pretty sure that the kids tasted the joy of learning through tinkering.

Kudos to the parents who allowed children to figure out how to Make things while guiding them instead of telling them what was right and wrong. Afterall even Edison made umpteen mistakes before inventing a light bulb. I suppose, the spirit of resilience is also nutured in the process of Making.

Through such workshops parents and children work together and bond with one another.

Such cool stuff made out of junk!

Foam Pantograph in the Making

Awww, she loves Art and our workshop. This was an energy boost for us because we know that our effort is worthwhile.

Measurements for wood pantograph

Father and Daughter using the hot glue gun to glue junk together

Snippets of certain incidents that stood out during the workshop :

While I was facilitating the Junk sculptures station where children glue random junk together to form cool sculptures, a mom told me “This is very cool, I think I get to learn more than my son when I come to such workshops”. I was very happy to hear this because it is indeed a workshop for families as our title suggests where not only the kids are enlightened, but also their parents.

There was a significant number of kids who were asking me where to buy the hot glue gun and how much it costs. Many commented in the feedback forms that they would like to know where to purchase the raw materials. This goes on to show that they would probably go home and Make as well. It is very heart warming to hear such things.

Children are so passionate about Making and they take ownership of what they make. A child named Morgan explained to me how the castle he made works and the unique features which it contained. Another kid, Sophia, was telling me how she made her the polymer clay bear. There is so much satisfaction and pride when the children talk about what they Make.

Before I joined Science Centre as an intern/temporary staff, words like “maker” and “tinkering” were at the bottom of my word bank. An Arts student like me saw the beauty of Science through simple activities like “Paper circuits” and “Bristle bolts”. I saw the pure Physics that I painstakingly studied in secondary 4 come alive.

Barely 3 weeks into work and I feel that if I had been introduced to ‘Making’ since young, I would have been a more creative person who thinks out of the box. The life of kids these days revolves around academics and the computer. They are given very minimal opportunities to hone their thinking skills but these are the kind of workshops which create innovative people.

Basic Paper Circuit

While explaining to me what paper circuits are and how to make them, Dr Kiruthika made the paper circuit above. How many of us know that aluminium foil and aluminium tapes are alternatives of wires, because they conduct electricity? There is a huge gap between practical and theory.

Students who attended the Pop up Maker space at Poi Ching Primary School used that simple concept of electricity and made interesting things with it.

Another maker, Priyanka Gupta – founder of Just Love Crafts, came down to Tampines to teach the bursary award recipients quilling. Making is just so beautiful, it really feeds one’s soul. Moreover, quilling is not only for relaxation purposes ,it is useful as anything from decorative items to jewelry can be made using paper. Yes, you read it correctly, PAPER.

LED was incorporated into a quilled flower

I saw the joy in children, parents and grandparents when they made items by themselves.

Grandmother quilled her own butterfly

Mother and children taking the idea of a basic circuits and making interesting things

Look at the smiles on their faces! ‘Making’ makes people happy indeed

It was my pleasure to see people’s face light up upon making their own items and learning things which are not in their textbooks.

The pop up makerspace at Poi Ching Primary school was a real eye opener for me.

Last December, over 1500 people came together at Science Centre to participate in HourofCodeSG. The week long coding event was facilitated almost completely by volunteers and members of the Maker community. We are glad to share Lianhe Zaobao’s coverage of the event, as well as two student makers – Shaun and Mantej- who showcased their coding/ robotic creations at the HourofCodeSG.

Summarised translation of the article:

In order to be better than others at computer games, Shaun Chua, picked up the skills for cracking online games, and inadvertently became interested in coding. The Higher Nitec student now no longer plays online games, but sends his free time coding to create electric toy cars and intelligent sensing system.

Shaun recently participated in Science Centre Singapore’s Hour of Code. He and 40 other volunteers demonstrated self-created robots and games, to interest children in coding. The event, attracted 1,500 children and parents.

15-year-old Mantej Singh was also a guide at Hour of Code, where he showcased his own robots. The ACS (Independent) student developed an interest in robotics after watching Terminator. At the age of 12, he was able to create robots using Lego toys that are controlled by computers.

About the Hour of Code, Mantej Singh said, “I participated in Hour of Code to share my knowledge with young ones, and showcased simple robotics apparatus to encourage them to explore the fun of coding.”

2014 has been a year where the Maker community in Singapore has grown by leaps and bounds. It was a wonderful year for the Maker Faire team as well, as we were more and more involved in the community events this year, with the aim of promoting Making in Education and families.

We started the year a Senja Cashew community club, where we supported the Hackidemia sessions at the Senja cashew Bursary awards.

Hackidemia session at the Senja Cashew community club

With more communities being interested in Making and learning, we moved on to the Tampines central community club in March, where we held our very first pop-up Makerspace, collaborating with Simplify 3D, Kids Parade, the Curious Design network, and the Ground up Initiative

3D printing showcase by Simplify 3D at the community pop-up makerspace – Tampines central community club

Maker Priyanka Datta teaches families about the joy of paper Quilling

We also began to bring the Maker movement into our own walls. We had the great pleasure of hosting several visiting Makers and inviting them to share, both with the Science Centre staff, as well as the visitors in Science Centre.

Sakar, from Karkhana, sharing on the Make Break Innovate idea with the Science Centre staff

We also began to do Maker workshops for families – which have now become our signature learn thru Making workshops

Families tinker together in our regular Maker workshops. Kids learn basic Maker skills and learn how to use tools

April saw us in Shenzhen, learning from the Maker Faire Shenzhen. I must say that we were completely blown over by the scale and seriousness of the Chinese Makers.

A direct result of the Shenzhen visit was the family workshop by Karkhana – Make break, Innovate. Dipeshwor and colleagues, who were passing through Singapore on their way back from Hackteria in Yogyakarta, stopped to share their experiences, as well as conduct a short workshop on cardboard games.

Dipeshwor from Karkhana, with a family proudly displaying their cardboard game

When I say short, it often means that the workshop lasts way longer than planned, as participants usually continue to tinker and often do not want to leave the Maker workshop. Thats a very good thing, though I have now started to bring along cookies to the facilitator de-brief that happens after the workshops.

Two projects, which were the highlights of this year, were the Maker Faire bookbinding day and the Yarnbomb SG project. Both the projects were completely owned and organized by the community, and were excellent learning opportunities in how very creative projects can come out in a bottom-up manner.

Agatha Lee, one of the lead community Makers behind the YangbombSG project signs the yarnbombed pillar at SMMF’14

A teaser to bookbinding

After the warmth and generous support of the community through these projects, we launched the Hangouts initiative, a programme that allows the community to propose year round initiatives at the Science Centre, with the aim of reaching out to the public through tinkering and Making.

The Singapore Quillers meetup – held at Science Centre this December

In July, we held the biggest Singapore Mini Maker Faire so far. Combined with the Singapore Mini Maker Faire Education day, which was held just a week prior, the Singapore Mini Maker Faire 2014 saw a gathering of over 250 makers with more than 150 maker exhibits, booths and workshops.

Kids light up the yarnbombed cardboard T-rex

Held at Senja Cashew community club, this was also the first time that the Maker Faire went to the heartlands in Singapore. The effect was awesome as we saw grandparents and grandchildren working, learning and Making together.

Repair Cafe at SMMF ’14

After a short break, the team came together again in October, to begin the Maker workshops for families. These workshops were an opportunity for kids and parents to experience learning with very loose structure and mostly experience the activities rather than learn about them. Facilitated by community Makers and volunteers, we also decided to make the workshops themed, so as to illustrate that Making is both interdisciplinary and widely applied. Watch out for the next Maker workshop in February, where we will be doing Making in Art on 14th February , 10am.

Families work together to make banana Pianos using Makey Makey

Family members work side by side to create marble machines out of everyday materials

Another highlight of this year was our visit to Maker Faire Japan. Invited by self proclaimed “Crazy Japanese Maker” Mazakasu Takasu, we spent a week in Tokyo immersing ourselves in the creative culture in Japan. We were astounded by the smooth way in which the Japanese transitioned from what could be considered as Japanese cultural crafts to stuff like Laser cutting and 3D printing – which are kind of the cornerstones of today’s Maker movement. This integration of the old with the new was almost seamless in Maker Faire Tokyo, leaving us completely open mouthed with amazement.

Laser engraved Japanese wood – the japanese style engraving was supposedly from EEG signals.

We also had the opportunity to discuss the burgeoning Maker Movement in Singapore and the Maker movement in Japan in an impromptu discussion with Nico Nico Beta – the Japanese equivalent of TEDx.

We ended the year on two high events. In order to raise awareness of coding as we move towards the Smart Nation campaign, we ran the Hour of Code from 8-14 March. at the Science Centre. With tech showcases from John O Brien, Henry Wong and several other Makers supplementing the online and offline coding activities, the event reached out to almost 2000 people. It was heartening to see kids as young as five years old grit their teeth as they worked out the higher levels of Lightbot – a gaming interface that taught children the basics of computer programming.

Families and kids programming at the Scientist for a Day. John Lim, in the foreground, shares how everyone can make a robot in less than half an hour by ‘hacking’ a remote control car

We also ran our first ever Maker Immersion camp in December – a programme where we collaborated with local Makers to impart the idea of Making to children. Around 30 children took part in the Maker immersion camp, where they went through sessions on design thinking, fabric hacking, electronics and coding, interspersed with talks on the Maker culture and Making.

Kids and facilitators working on paper circuits during the Maker immersion camp

It was a very busy 2014 and 2015 looks even more busy and happening. We do hope that we can reach out to enable more families to embrace the process of Making as part of their daily lives. Watch this space for more stories and happenings from the Maker Faire team.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced a week ago that Singapore students should be taught to “code, prototype and build things, to fail fast and learn quickly.” Hour of Code SG aims to teach children how to begin coding in an easy and interactive manner.

The Hour of Code was launched in the US in 2013 as an online campaign to introduce coding to the public in a friendly and interactive manner. The Hour of code campaign introduces kids aged 5 and up into programming. This year, we are bringing the Hour of code to Singapore through a series of interactive activities. Activities are free, no pre registration is required. Admission to Science Centre applies to non members.

Activities at a glance. AM sessions are from 10am to 12.30pm and PM sessions are from 2.30pm to 5.00pm

Station Activities8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th and 14th December AM and PM, 13th December PM only

Coding with Scratch
Coding with Blockly
Lightbot
Turtleart

Coding Unplugged
Pixels to pictures
Codes and Cryptography

Tech Showcases

8th December 2.30pm-5.00pm: Programmers: Students of ITE college East with Arthur Pedida

How to build a robot car: This Robot car can be autonomous using sensors to avoid obstructions and find his ways. Additionally, it can be modified & equipped with Bluetooth module in order to communicate and be controlled by Smartphone.

8th December 2.30pm-5.00pm: Programmers: Cadaq

Raspberry Pi Camera

8th December and 9th December 2.30pm-5.00pm: Programmers: Mantej Singh

Lego NXT robots

9th and 10th December 2.30pm-5.00pm: Programmer: Melvin Zhang

Play a game which has artificial intelligence: I got interested in Computer Science at an early age when playing against a chess program and wondering how a machine could play better than a person. Through this project, I got to go back to my favorite topic in Computer Science and had the opportunity to interact with users and developers from around the world as we worked together to improve the software.

9th December. 10.00AM-12.30PM: Programmer: Kiruthika

What lives inside a computer? Join in a tear down session where we will take apart an old computer and peripherals to understand what are the components that make up the machines that we use everyday.

11th and 12th December. 10.00AM-12.30PM: Programmer: Andy Giger

Illustrations of the usefulness of coding : I have a few processing sketches, ranging from complex scientific simulations to simple quick sketches, that I could showcase as illustrations of the usefulness of coding. A possible example: http://andygiger.com/science/e-coriolis/.

13th and 14th December, 2.30pm to 5.00pm: Programmer: John O Brien

Respberry Pi Beerbot: Steer a home-made remote controlled robot with Beer (or Coke) can grabbing capability over wifi! See what the robot sees using a Raspberry Pi camera! Drive and activate the can grabbing claw over an SSH connection! Ask insightful questions! Find out More about John at http://jweoblog.com/

The Singapore Mini Maker Faire 2014 may be over, but we have a series of very exciting Maker events planned for both Makers and public starting October 2014. Details will be up very soon, so watch this space.

Its been just over two weeks since the Singapore Mini Maker Faire 2014 and we are completely overwhelmed by the number of articles that have made their way into the online and traditional media about the Maker’s movement and the Singapore Mini Maker Faire. Thanks are in order to the Makers and the many groups whose support made the Singapore Mini Maker Faire such a huge success.

Call for Makers Maker Faire 2015

Make n Speak Hackathon

In this unique camp, co-organized by Science Centre and Kidz Parade magazine, children (10-12 years) learn to propose and build solutions for a sustainable life and learn how learn how technologies can be used to develop smart solutions. Children also learn to communicate about their projects, participate in discussions and write about their work for a chance to get published! This is a day camp, 10am-4pm. Lunch will be provided. For more details click here